Imitation cloisonne and method of making the same



M; ZERILLI 2,128,390

IMITATION GLOISONNE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Aug. 30, 1938.

LEMEgVL EWEMEV Filed Dec. 26, 1935 @WME . A 7 Y mmwm wadm Z m PatentedAug. 30, 1938 UNITED STATES IMITATION CLOISONNE AND METHOD OF MAKING THESAME Marius Zerilli, South Ozone Park, N. Y., assignor to Harry R.Singer, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application December 26, 1935, Serial No. 56,276

16 Claims.

This invention relates to imitation cloisonn and a method of making thesame. Imitation cloisonn made according to this invention is a newdecorative material closely imitating the artistic ornamentations ofenameled metals and adapted for use in ornamental panels, plaques or thelike, and has various other applications to articles of jewelry,handbags, vanity cases and boxes, toilet wear and in fact to any articlewhere ornamentation is desired.

One object of this invention is a simple, and inexpensive imitation ofcloisonn.

Another object of this invention is imitation cloisonn having artisticdesigns of distinctly contrasting colors.

Another object is a method of making imitation cloisonn having patternsof distinctly contrasting color on celluloid.

Other objects will appear from the detailed description which follows.

In accordance with my invention imitation cloisonn is produced byembossing, guilloching, or otherwise impressing, engraving or etchingthe desired pattern on one surface of a relatively thin sheet ofcelluloid, preparing the said surface to receive a metallic coating ofsilver or the like and thereafter either covering said metallic coatingwith a protective covering or removing selected portions of saidmetallic coating from the surface of the celluloid and substitutingtherefor one or more deposits of highly contrasting color, andthereafter where necessary applying a protective covering to the same.

In the drawing comprising but a single sheet 35 of five figures numberedFigs. 1 to 5 inclusive,

certain embodiments are set forth.

Fig. 1 is a front view of an imitation cloisonn disc embodying myinvention.

Fig. 2 is .a vertical section of the disc taken along the line 2-2 ofFig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows at a. certain stage inthe process.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of said disc at still another stage in theprocess.

but with a protective covering applied thereto to complete oneembodiment of the invention; and Fig. 5 is a vertical section of thedisc of Fig. 3 carried to the final stage of the process to produce analternative embodiment of said imitation cloisonn. Like referencecharacters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figuresof the drawing.

The disc Ill is of celluloid suitably embossed or otherwise impressed,guilloched, etched or engraved to produce any preferred pattern. Thepattern thus resolves itself into a series of depressions, indentationsor valleys l2, and a second series of raised or relief portions, peaksFig. 4 is a vertical section similar to Fig. 2

or protuberances I I, to which the decorative coating or coatings mustbe applied. The material may be colorless or tinted with any desiredcolor as preferred according to the ornamental effect desired.

Ordinarily when treated as hereinafter described the materialwould havea dull or semiglossed finish. If a high gloss is desired, the disc II)should be dipped or sprayed with celluloid dip or a solution ofcelluloid in acetone or some similar solution, and the surface of discIll should then be allowed to dry thoroughly. The embossed surface ofdisc 10 is then washed with a solution of nitrate of zinc or nitrate oftin. A suitable preparation forthis purpose (hereinafter designatedFormula #1) may be madeby mixing one half ounce by weight of nitrate oftin or nitrate of zinc in approximately one quart of tap water. Thequantity of water employed will vary dependent upon the degree ofhardness of the water used and this depends to some extent upon thequantity of iron contained in the water. When suflicient water has beenmixed with the nitrate of tin or nitrate of zinc to pro duce a milky orturbid appearance no more water need be added.

After washing the embossed surface of disc ill with the above describedpreparation (Formula #1) the surface should be wiped. off with a clothor a paper towel and allowed to dry thoroughly. Satisfactory drying canbe accomplished at room temperature. After the embossed surface of discI0 is thoroughly dried, a preparation consisting. of silver nitrate,ammonia, alcohol, Rochelle salts and distilled water (hereinafterdesignated Formula #4), which is prepared as hereinafter described isapplied thereto as by pouring, and is allowed to remain upon the surfaceof disc l0, until the silver has been precipitated over the entiresurface including the raised portions II and depressions 62, which willreceive a coating of silver.

Formula #4 is prepared by mixing substantially equal volumes of twoother preparations hereinafter designated for convenience Formula #2 andFormula #3. Formula #2 contains the following ingredients insubstantially the following proportions:

Silver nitrate ors. by weight 8 Ammonia solution fluid ozs 8 Woodalcohol do, 1 Distilled water gal 1 Formula #2 may be prepared by addingabout 8 fluid ounces of distilled water to the silver nitrate, thenadding the ammonia solution to dissolve the silver nitrate, then addingthe wood alcohol, and thereafter adding the balance of the one gallon ofdistilled water while agitating. until the mixture becomes clear andtransparent. The resulting preparation is then preferably filtered toremove any foreign matter. Chemically pure ammonia solution andchemically pure wood alcohol are preferred.

Formula #3 contains the following ingredients in substantially thefollowing proportions:

Rochelle salts pounds by weight 3 Distilled water gallon 1 Formula .#3isprepared by dissolving the three pounds of Rochelle salts in the onegallon of distilled water and filtering the resulting solution.

Formula #4 is obtained by diluting portions of Formulae Nos. 2 and 3.For example, 6 to 8 fluid ounces of Formula #2 is diluted withsufficient distilled water to make a total of one gallon. Similarly 6 to8 fluid ounces of Formula #3 is diluted with sufiicient distilled waterto make a total of one gallon. The diluted preparations are keptseparate until used. To coat the transparent celluloid disc I 'withsilver, substantially equal volumes of Formulae Nos. 2 and 3 as diluted,are mixed together to produce metallic lustre.

Formula #4, and a suitable quantityof Formula #4 is then poured upon theembossed surface of disc I 0 where it is allowed to remain until thesilver has been precipitated over the entire surface of disc ill. Thetime required for effecting precipitation of the silver will varyaccording to the particular conditions, but in general a satisfactorysilver coating will be precipi tated at the expiration of about one halfhour.

If a heavy silver coating is desired, Formula #4 should be allowedtoremain upon the surface of disc ill for a longer period of time. Afterthe desired silver coating has been formed the remaining liquor isdrained off, and while still wet the silver coating is rinsed with clearwater to remove any sediment, and when the silver coating has beenwashed clean, disc in is allowed to dry thoroughly. Disc It will now bein the condition shown in section in Fig. 2 where the silver coating isindicated generally by numeral IS, the depressions I! being covered bythe silver coating portions indicated generally at 14 and the raisedportions H of disc l0 being covered by thelssilver coating portionsindicated generally a When disc I. is viewed from the front (Fig. 1), orfromthe right of Fig. 2, it will have a If the disc I0 is colorless, thelustre will be that of silver, while if disc I0 is tinted, the silvercoating l3 willreflect the tint of the celluloid and simulate the lustreof metallic copper, bronze, gold as well as the lustre of otherdecorative substances such as coral, amber,

emerald, ivory, etc. In fact e t imulating the eye appearance of any eossed or loched decorative material can be vobtained b selecting asuitably tinted celluloid material.-

To protect the silver coating l3 a suitable backing I8 is used (Fig. 4).This backing may be a liquid preparation such as, a quick drying paint,lacquer, etc., or any other. preferred material. The finished productwill present a two tone effect dependent upon the manner of exposure tothe light.

Instead of the two tone effect previously described, a highlycontrasting eifect (such as silver and black, gold and black, silver andred, etc), can be procured if desired. To produce this effect the discIII is treated in the manner previously described until the process hasreached the stage where the sediment has been rinsed off with cleanwater after the silver coating l3 has.

been formed. While the silver coating I3 is still wet, .its surface iswiped with a clean dry rag and thereafter with a second rag moistenedwith lemon oil. By these operations the pdrtions ii of silver coatingl3* covering the raised portions ll of disc III will be removed, and theeffect shown in Fig. 3 produced. When disc III of Fig.- 3 is viewed fromthe right, it will resemble in appearance a series of metallic lines orgeometric figures alternating with a series of transparent lines orfigures. Any desired contrast of color may now be obtained by applying asuitably colored quick drying paint or lacquer ll upon the silvercoating portions 14 and the raised portions ll of disc it). While asuitably colored liquid preparation is preferred for the coating ll, itshould be understood that other suitably tinted materials may besubstituted therefor if desired. The resulting eifect when viewed fromthe right of Figure 5 will be a mosaic of mirror like lines or geometricfigures interspersed or laced with lines or figures simulating tintedenamels, the whole having the eye appearance of cloisonn. The imitationcloisonn disc may be further protected if desired, by backing I8, whichmay be applied either in the form of a quick drying liquid paint,lacquer or the like etc., or in the form of a suitable cloth or othermaterial. Since the dried silver I 4 remains in the depressions orguilloched portions l2 of disc Ill the paint or lacquer l1 will coveronly the portions ll of the celluloid disc 10 where the silver has beenremoved.

Celluloid tubing may be treated by this process to produce the sameeffects in the following manner. The tubing thoroughly on the insidewith Formula #1. This may be done by submerging the tubing in a suitablevat or tank containing a quantity of Formula #1. The inside of the tubeshould then be rinsed with plainwater and allowed to dry. One end of thetubing should now be plugged or sealed, and thenfilled to the top withFormula #4. After allowing the preparation to remain inside the tubingfor a sufiicient length of time to precipitate the silver upon theinside thereof, the remaining liquor should be poured out, the sealedend of the tube opened and the inside of the tube thoroughly washed withclean water to remove all traces of sediment. The tube should then beallowed to dry thoroughly. The open end of the tubing should then besealed or plugged and the tubing filled with a suitable quick dryingpaint or lacquer whichvshould be poured out of the tubing again almostimmediately, allowing only a very thin coating to remain to cover thesilver. This coating should then be allowed to dry and set. Anycommercial tubing from inch diameter-up may be treated in the mannerdescribed.

The two color efiects previously described may also be obtained byforming the tubing from flat strips of suitably embossed or guillochedcelluloid having the edges brought together and cemented to complete thetube. After precipitating the silver upon the inside of the tubingandrinsing it, inthe manner previously described, the silver may beremoved from the raised portions by passing a wick of suitable diametermoistened should first be washed It should also be understood thattheembossed or guilloched strips of celluloid may be treated in themanner previously described to form imitation cloisonn and thereafterformed into tubing by cementing the connecting edges.

By using the foregoing process as applied to a smooth sheet of celluloidinstead of the embossed sheet as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, a celluloidmirror is made.

While the preferred manner of removing the portion l5 of silver 43, isby the application of lemon oil, it should be understood that the saidportions 15 could be removed by the use of an abrasive such as pumice,or rotten stone, and a suitable oil.

What is claimed is:

1. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in firstwashing the surface to be ornamented with a solution containing thenitrate of a metallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding saiddried surface with a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same tolie while the metal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface,and removing the liquor and sediment from the metal coated surface.

2. Method of ornamenting celluloid which consists in first washing thesurface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing theliquor, rinsing the metal coated surface with water, drying saidsurface, and thereafter covering said metal surface with a protectivebacking.

3. Method of ornamenting celluloid which consists in first washing thesurface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing .theliquor, rinsing the metal coated surface, allowing said metal coatedsurface to dry, and applying a protective covering to said metalsurface.

4. Method of ornamenting celluloid which consists in flrst washing thesurface to be ornamented with a solution containing zinc nitrate,allowing said washed surface to dry, flooding said dried surface with aliquid preparation containing silver nitrate and Rochelle salts andallowing the same to lie while metallic silver is uniformly precipitatedupon said flooded surface, and removing the liquor and sediment from thesilver coated surface.

5. Method of ornamenting celluloid which consists in flrst applyingcelluloid dip'tdthe surface to be ornamented, then washing said surfacewith a solution containing the nitrate of a metallic salt, allowing saidsurface to dry, flooding said dried surface with a liquid preparationcontain-.

ing silver nitrate and Rochelle salts and allowingthe same to lie whilemetallic silver is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, andremoving the liquor and sediment from the silver coated surface.

6. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washing,the surface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate ofa metallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said driedsurface with a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to liewhile the metal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface,removing the liquor and sediment from the metal coated surface, andapplying lemon oil with an absorbent material to the moist metalliccoated raised portions of the embossed surface to remove the metallicprecipitate therefrom.

7. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washingthe surface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution' of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing theliquor and sediment from the metal coated surface, removing the excessmoisture from the metal coated surface, and applying lemon oil with anabsorbent material to the metal coated raised portions of the embossedsurface to remove the metal coating from said raised portions.

8. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washingthe surface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing theliquor and material.

9. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washingthe surface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing theliquor and sediment from the metal'coated surface, removing the metalliccoating from the raised portions of the embossed surface, and applying aquick drying coating of an opaque substance of contrasting color uponsaid embossed surface including the ornamented portion thereof.

10. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washingthe surface to be I the metallic coating from said raised portions,

and backing the ornamented surface with a layer of protective material.

11. Method of ornamenting embossed celluloid which consists in washingthe surface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the' same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded surface, removing theliquor and sediment from the metal coated surface, removing the excessmoisture from the metal coated surface, rubbing the raised metal coatedportions of the embossed surface with lemon oil until the metalliccoating is removed from said raised portions, and applying a quickdrying coating ofan opaque substance of contrasting color upon saidembossed surface including said ornamented surface.

12. Method of ornamenting celluloid tubing which consists in filling thetubing with zinc nitrate solution, rinsing the inside of the tubing withwater, drying said tubing, filling the tubing with a liquid preparationcontaining silver nitrate in solution, retaining said'liquid preparationin said tubing'until thesilver is uniformly precipitated upon the innerwall thereof, emptying the liquor from the tubing,.rinsing the inside'ofthe tubing, drying said tubing, filling the tubing with a quick dryingliquid adhesive coating, emptying the surplus liquid from the tubing,and drying said tubing.

l3. Imitation cloisonn comprising a sheet of transparent celluloid, saidsheet having a pattern formed in relief on one surface thereof, a layerof metallic silver adhering to the depressed portions of the saidsurface, and a coating of opaque material of contrasting color appliedto the raised portions of the said surface.

14. Method of ornamenting celluloid which consists in first washing thesurface to be ornamented with a solution containing the nitrate of ametallic salt, allowing said surface to dry, flooding said dried surfacewith a salt solution of a metal and allowing the same to lie while themetal is uniformly precipitated upon said flooded.

terial of contrasting color applied to certain other portions of thesaid pattern.

MARIUS ZERIILI.

